While there are no specific foods that can maintain your health or protect you from a virus, a nutritious diet can help to boost your immune system and make a difference in the way you think, look and feel. Eating healthy doesn’t have to be over complicated or look like a list of good and bad foods. Some specific foods do have specific healthy nutrients, but it’s your overall pattern of eating that is the main ingredient for eating healthy. The crux is to eat food that is as close as possible to the way nature made it. You don’t have to be perfect but aim for making a few small changes and as your small changes become habit, continue to add more healthy choices. Select the healthiest options from a balance of protein, fat, carbohydrates, fiber, vitamins and minerals to sustain a healthy body.
Choose sources of high-quality protein. Fish, poultry, low-fat dairy products, beans/peas, nuts/seeds, and soy products.
Good fats. Monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats are good for your heart, cholesterol and overall health. Avocados, olives, nuts, seeds, salmon, safflower oil and soymilk.
Fiber is the part of plant based foods that the body can’t break down. Grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts and beans contain fiber that can boost your immune system, overall health and improve the way you look and feel.
Calcium is used by almost every cell in the body in some way. Good sources include dairy products, leafy green vegetables, oatmeal and other grains, cabbage, summer squash, green beans and calcium fortified foods such as cereal and orange juice.
Carbohydrates should come from complex, unrefined carbs. That means vegetables, whole grains and fruit. Refined carbs such as pasta, French fries, pizza, white bread and sugary deserts, that have been stripped of bran, fiber and nutrients are referred to as the bad carbs. Eliminating the bad carbs can lead to feeling healthier, more energetic and shedding extra body fat.
“Food is a part of our contract with life.” Bryant McGill